Thinking of doing your PhD in the Life Sciences? The International PhD Programme (IPP) Mainz is offering talented scientists the chance to work on cutting edge research projects within the open call on “Molecular Mechanisms in Genome Stability & Gene Regulation”. As an IPP PhD student, you will join a community of exceptional scientists working on diverse topics ranging from how organisms age or how our DNA is repaired, to how epigenetics regulates cellular identity or neural memory. The research group of Edward Lemke offers the following PhD project:

In higher eukaryotes, proteins that lack an apparent folded structure are enriched in many vital processes. The Lemke group studies intrinsically disordered proteins in vital cellular processes, including transcription, nuclear transport, and healthy ageing. Since such highly dynamic systems are inaccessible to most conventional approaches, the group employs a multidisciplinary approach that combines single-molecule, microfluidics, super-resolution techniques, and chemical/synthetic biology tools.

PhD project: High Resolution Fluorescence Imaging of Protein Plasticity

We are now seeking a PhD student with a strong interest in expanding our efforts in quantitative single-molecule and super-resolution-based technologies to study protein dynamics within the context of microphase separation. While macrophase separation, leading to visible “protein/RNA” droplets, has been widely studied and suggested to be a mechanism underlying so-called membraneless organelles, potential associative mechanisms that lead to sub-resolution structures are poorly understood. However, those might play key roles in, for example, transcriptional regulation.

The project is particularly well-suited for candidates with a strong background in the physical sciences who are intensely interested in biosciences. Physicists, biophysicists, and polymer scientists, as well as physical chemists with a strong computational background, who are interested in exploring this area, are as well suited as are biologists or biochemists with a high interest in venturing into quantitative science. The project will be highly interdisciplinary, and there are multiple aspects to it that one or two different persons can fill with different interests/backgrounds.

In all cases, extensive project training will be provided. Candidates with little or no prior experience in experimental biosciences, but a strong wish to engage in these areas, are particularly encouraged to apply. High interest and motivation are the primary selection criteria, and candidates from other disciplines who wish to venture into these areas are explicitly welcome to apply.

If you are interested in this project, please select Lemke as your group preference in the IPP application platform. Are you an ambitious scientist looking to push the boundaries of research while interacting with colleagues from multiple disciplines and cultures? Then joining the IPP is your opportunity to give your scientific career a flying start!
All you need is:

Master or equivalent
Interactive personality & good command of English
2 letters of reference
We offer

Exciting, interdisciplinary projects in a lively international environment, with English as our working language
Advanced training in scientific techniques and professional skills
Access to our state-of-the-art Core Facilities and their technical expertise
Fully funded positions with financing until the completion of your thesis
A lively community of more than 200 PhD students from 44 different countries


For more details on the projects offered and how to apply via the online form using the apply now button

The deadline for applications is 1 April 2026. Interviews will take place at IMB in Mainz on 22 & 23 June 2026.
Starting date: 1 July - 31 December 2026